Opposition Membership Flooded With Fake Names, Fictitious Identities – Shettima

Vice President Kashim Shettima has accused opposition parties of relying on “lies and hypocrisy” to sustain their political relevance, declaring that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is now in a stronger position than it was during the 2023 general elections.

Shettima spoke at an interfaith breaking of fast organised for Ramadan and Lent at the State House in Abuja, where he represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Using the occasion to rally support for the administration ahead of the next political cycle, the Vice President urged party loyalists and political leaders present to stand firmly behind the government.

“Excellencies, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, the political season is around the corner. We are all political actors. We have to sell our government. We have to stand behind our administration,” he said.

The Vice President also took aim at the opposition coalition, criticising the party over its advocacy for electronic transmission of election results.

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According to him, the party’s recent online membership registration exercise exposed weaknesses in its digital systems.

“The same people who were adamant that we must have electronic transmission of votes opened their portal for membership registration, and it was flooded with fake names and fictitious identities,” Shettima said.

Expanding his criticism to the broader opposition landscape, the Vice President alleged that misinformation has become a defining strategy among rival parties.

“You and I know that, as Winston Churchill once said, ‘truth is so precious that it must be surrounded by a bodyguard of lies.’ Lies, lies, lies that is what is driving the opposition in this country,” he stated.

Shettima further maintained that the APC’s political footing has strengthened significantly since the last general elections.

“Politically speaking, we are in a more comfortable position now than in 2023,” he said.

Commenting on the recent wave of defections to the ruling party, the Vice President dismissed suggestions that governors were being pressured to switch allegiance.

“Nobody is coercing the governors of Rivers, Delta, Kano or any other state to join the APC. It is at their own volition because they have seen the light,” he added.